


A Better Arrangement

by afteriwake



Series: Molly Madness Month - March 2017 [13]
Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Alternate Season/Series 04, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Amused Irene, Amused Molly, Angry Irene, Angry Molly, BAMF Irene Adler, BAMF Molly Hooper, Bisexual Molly, F/F, Fluff and Humor, Girls Kissing, Marriage Proposal, Mistaken for a Call Girl, POV Molly Hooper, Past Irene Adler/Sherlock Holmes, Patient Irene, Relationship History, Sherlock Holmes & Molly Hooper Friendship, Unwanted Advances, clubs, mentions of bondage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-09
Updated: 2017-03-09
Packaged: 2018-10-01 15:37:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10193168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: While Molly is waiting for her girlfriend at Milk & Honey, she gets an unwanted come-on to be someone’s kept woman. Fortunately, Irene has a better suggestion.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [onceinabluemoon13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/onceinabluemoon13/gifts), [elsarenard](https://archiveofourown.org/users/elsarenard/gifts).



> _Ages_ ago on my Tumblr, [there was a thread](http://penaltywaltz.tumblr.com/post/137848334648/doctor-molly-hooper-holmes-penaltywaltz) that started out as fandom wank which became interesting in the discussion of just how much money Molly makes at Barts, and it led me to write down a fic idea (encouraged by **onceinabluemoon13** ): " _Molly is accosted by someone who is pursuing her romantically and can’t understand why she won’t let him take care of her, even though she makes decent sum of money and can take care of herself quite well. He keeps badgering her until finally her girlfriend steps in to set him straight._ " It was recently claimed by **elsarenard** , who wanted me to write a Mollrene fic to make my next big milestone of 850 Sherlock-centric fics and 1,300 fics altogether on AO3.

There were some definite perks to dating Irene Adler, Molly had to admit, and the membership to Milk & Honey had been among the top of them. She had her own money from being one of the most well-respected specialist registrars in all of England; her job paid quite well and that wasn’t including anything she made over that in bonuses when she got a grant approved for Barts. There were some perks to being a good friend to a certain famous consulting detective, too. So she made a nice tidy sum, but she’d never thought to apply for membership at the club until Irene.

Actually, there were quite a few things she had never thought to do until Irene.

It was all very strange how it had all come about. When Sherlock was saved at the last minute from his one-way trip to Russia, the murder of Magnussen was neatly covered up, as was everything he had in regards to the blackmail he was holding over others. After all, it had all been in his head, Sherlock had said, and that was why he had shot him in the first place; so long as he was alive, he would always be a threat to Mary and John.

But a few weeks later she was at Baker Street with him, filling in as his partner, when it turned out the client was a familiar face to him, and actually wasn’t a client at all. He’d seemed a bit embarrassed about things, explaining how he knew Irene, as though he forgot that it was Irene’s mutilated body Molly had supposedly watched him identify the night of the Christmas party all those years ago. And Irene was glad to see him, but she looked at Molly and something...clicked.

Whatever it was that she and Sherlock had shared, it seemed, was no longer in the present tense. She had decided to set her sights on someone else. Namely a pathologist slash sometimes crime solving partner of Sherlock Holmes.

Strangely, he didn’t seem to mind too much.

It was, however, much stranger for her.

She’d been hit on by women before, and maybe flirted with the idea of kissing a woman or doing more, but never actually gone through with it. But it wasn’t that she wasn’t interested in Irene, either. It was all rather confusing at the start, for her to sort it all out and figure out if she liked _all_ women as well as men or just _some_ women or just Irene…

And Irene was very patient. Sherlock would make comments on how this patience was unusual for her, how that meant she was truly invested in a relationship with Molly. She never asked about _their_ relationship, but she knew it had been different and had been going on for a long while. Nd that was another point: was it over, what Sherlock and Irene had had?

She realized one day she hadn’t heard the moan ringtone that signified a text alert from Sherlock’s phone in some time and asked him if Irene was texting him still. He suggested she ask Irene that, which was rather curious. She sent a text, and the reply was “ _That would be cheating_.” She at least had one question answered: Irene only wanted her. That made things easier.

Their first kiss had happened quite by accident, but in no way how she had imagined. She had always imagined, from tabloid tales and Sherlock’s words, Irene liked glamorous things, posh places. But their first kiss happened one evening on Molly’s comfortable sofa while they were in pyjamas watching Firefly, as Irene compared her job as a dominatrix to Inara’s as a companion and they laughed over the funny bits while they ate Chinese takeaway and drank the good wine Irene had brought. Irene had said she would absolutely love some of the clothing Inara wore and Molly said she should wear her hair down more so she could run her fingers through it and then she’d be more beautiful than Inara and then she leaned over and kissed Irene before snuggling into her and falling asleep. And when she woke up the next morning, Irene was still there.

And so now there were nights where they indulged in wine and takeaway and binged on television series, but there were also nights where they went out on the town. In her years of absence Irene’s notoriety had waned, and when people saw her with Molly, holding her hand and kissing her in public, the tabloid rags began speculating on a wedding date rather than what naughtiness Irene was up to. A change for the better, Molly decided. A wedding would be nice at some point, if they ever decided to be like society wanted them to be. She wouldn’t mind being Molly Hooper-Adler. Or Molly Adler-Hooper.

Well, they could sort that out if it ever got to that point.

Irene had already texted her that she was running late. Unlike Sherlock, she did _not_ have a moan ringtone for her texts; instead, Irene simply said “It’s me, darling” in her most sultry voice. Bland enough for work but still provocative enough to make her think certain thoughts. Her phone had just gone off again as she sat in the seating area that had become theirs, letting Molly know she was nearly there. Good. There was a good deal to celebrate and there could be some fun to be had in the privacy they had here.

“What’s a beautiful woman like you doing waiting all alone?” she heard a man ask, and inwardly she groaned. He wasn’t British, so perhaps he had a membership at the New York club and was here for...reasons. Reasons, she surmised as she looked up at him, that included getting pissed and getting shagged.

“Waiting for someone,” she said, not sure how he would react if he knew that “someone” was her girlfriend.

“I could be your someone,” he said, giving her a cheeky grin. “You know, I could take care of you.”

She let her jaw hang down slightly. It wasn’t an exorbitant membership to Milk & Honey, but it _was_ on the exclusive side. How did he think-- _Oh._ He probably thought she was a woman of the night. She picked up her glass of French Pearl and took a sip to fortify herself because _how the bloody hell did he think she was a call girl_?!? “I can take care of myself just fine, thank you.”

“Yeah, but a woman like you, working such long hours...” he said, making to sit down next to her.

“Move one more inch towards that seat and I’ll make you a eunuch while you’re still conscious,” she said, putting her drink down with some force. “I’m a bloody doctor, you git. A surgeon, in point of fact, who _just so happens_ to operate on dead people.” She waited for that to sink in.

He blinked and then looked at her and shrugged. “I’m a lawyer,” he replied. “Partner in a firm in New York City.”

“Unbelievable,” she muttered to herself, lowering her head. “I am not interested in being your kept woman.”

“Why not?” he asked, sounding offended. “I’ve got to be a better man that whatever asshole left you waiting here.”

“The quote unquote asshole who left her there is here now,” Molly heard Irene say sharply as she approached. “I think it would be best if you leave my fiancee alone before she guts you with a scalpel. She makes more than enough to take care of herself and if she didn’t, I can take care of us easily. Now _leave_.” Irene glared at the man and he shrank in on himself before shuffling away.

Molly looked over at her. “Did you hear all of it?”

“Oh, I couldn’t help it. He apparently has no idea what an indoor voice is,” she said, sliding into the booth next to Molly. “Security was coming over to sort it out but I wanted to try my hand at it. They said I could punch him if he was still an arse.”

“You would have loved that,” Molly said with a chuckle.

“Why yes I would,” Irene said. “Trying to swipe you out from under my nose.” She gently placed her fingers under Molly’s chin and then leaned in to kiss her, a kiss that became a bit more heated than Molly had probably intended. But there were certain things about Irene that were _definite_ turn-ons. When they pulled apart, Molly gave her an amused look. “Yes?”

“Fiancee?” Molly asked.

“Well, I have a ring and a bottle of champagne and I just got some new bondage rope to celebrate what I hope will be your acceptance,” Irene said, running a finger down Molly’s thigh. “But I figured assuming you had already said yes while dealing with that prat was more effective than saying ‘girlfriend.’”

Molly pursed her lips together. “Am I getting tied up or you?”

“Mmm, I thought we’d both have a go and make for a long night of celebration,” Irene said, her eyes sparkling. “That _is_ a yes, then?”

Molly nodded before leaning in again. “Most definitely,” she said before kissing her again. It appeared that discussion on name changes would have to take place sooner than she had expected.

Good.


End file.
